PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Newly filed court documents show Providence officials estimate the city could owe the public school district up to nearly $55 million following a court decision handed down last week.

The memorandum, filed Tuesday in RI Superior Court by city attorneys Dean Wagner and Edward Pare, outlines five possible outcomes.

Pare and Wagner estimate the city could owe a total of $11.2 million to $54.8 million to the Providence Public School District after Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Lanphear ruled the city was not in compliance to the Crowley law. State law mandates that municipal funding for school districts subject to state intervention must be increased by the same percentage as the statewide increase in school aid.

Lanphear has not yet determined how much the city should pay the district. A hearing is scheduled for next week.

The lawyers presented five scenarios that calculated how much city taxpayers might have to pay, based on a complex set of criteria.

Mayor Brett Smiley said Tuesday that depending on the amount a judge was to determine, the city was also considering layoffs, program cuts and possible tax increases.

“This decision will have real consequences,” the mayor said on Tuesday.

On Thursday, House Speaker Rep. Joe Shekarchi said he would keep an open mind about any help the state could provide to the district and would even consider reforming the Crowley Act.

“Everything is still on the table. Nothing is prejudged,” Shekarchi said.

But Shekarchi said that with federal COVID-19 relief funds drying up, the state budget is going to get tighter. He said the RI General Assembly would not be able to intervene until the next session in January.

“The State House is a beautiful building, but I assure you there is no printing press in the basement,” Shekarchi said. “Unlike the federal government, we must live within our means. »

Governor Dan McKee previously told the RI Department of Education the state can’t helpwhile Rhode Island faces its own deficit of about $335 million.

Providence Public Schools has been state controlled since 2019. Throughout the intervention, the RI Department of Education said state aid to the district increased by $30.5 million. dollars, compared to only $5.5 million for the city.

Superintendent Dr. Javier Montañez applauded the court’s recent decision and said Tuesday that amid the financial conflict, students’ needs continued to grow and were ignored by the city.

“Years and years of underfunding our students,” Montañez said. “That’s why we’re here.”

Montañez warned that cuts in areas such as RIPTA bus passes for some students, school sports and layoffs of non-union staff were on the table.

The district previously sent a letter with a timeline showing that it would begin notifying coaches and principals of its intent to cancel winter and spring sports, and that it would notify RIPTA of its intent to change its service agreement.

It was unclear whether the district was still on schedule amid the ongoing litigation. Target 12 contacted the district Thursday but did not receive a response.

RIPTA spokesperson Sara Furbush told Target 12 the agency was continuing negotiations with the district and had no further information Thursday.

Target 12 also reached out to the RI Interscholastic League for comment, but did not immediately receive a response Thursday.

Alexandra Leslie ([email protected]) is a Target 12 investigative reporter covering Providence and more for 12 News. Connect with her on Twitter and on Facebook.

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